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Making the best better:performance psychology integrated in special operation forces training
Get PDFIntroduction: This study investigates how performance psychology was employed in conjunction with an operational combat squadron in NORSOF (Norwegian Special Operation Forces) whilst they were preparing for deployment. Access to this group allowed the research team to evaluate the contribution which a performance psychology package (PP) can make to an elite military unit with little or no previous exposure of such training.Methods: The study utilized an explorative longitudinal case study format to evaluate a mixed intervention. Content was delivered in two formats: psychoeducation in a classroom setting and in situ PP delivery during training. Data were collected through four stages of semi-structured, in-depth interviews with a significant time interval between each stage. Stage one occurred prior to the intervention—offering an informal baseline to understand what knowledge and skills the operators perceived in themselves; Stage two was conducted prior to deployment, after the unit's workup had finished. Stage three data was gathered upon the unit's return from deployment. Finally, as stage 4, an 18-month follow-up was conducted with key members of the unit.Results: Analyzed through Reflective Thematic Analysis, results indicate that the operators already held a high level of mental skills—likely a result of absorbing practices that are learned and developed in order to adapt successfully to their performance environment. Importantly, however, results also indicate that the additional structured PP intervention, integrated within the unit's workup training, increased perceived performance at both an individual and unit level. The follow-up supports the initial results. Discussion: Although SOF already are high performers and very good at what they do, our contention is that performance psychology could be a valuable and important concept to integrate and develop further
Advances in Diagnosis and Imaging 2025: Benchmarking Reporting Approach for Imaging in Neurological Studies
Get PDFTeaching as rooted cosmopolitans:Towards justice-oriented internationalization in Higher Education
Get PDFThe concept of cosmopolitanism has been the subject of philosophical debate as to whether a commitment to it requires the shedding of particularist attachments (such as attachments to a national or group identity, or their accompanying convictions), or whether such particularist commitments might enhance a cosmopolitan orientation. This paper brings these debates to bear on the internationalization of higher education, particularly in relation to the work of academics who implement universities’ internationalization strategies through teaching, and who aim to do so fairly and justly. Drawing on our individual reflections as well as shared conversations about our experiences, we propose that the philosophically-informed concept of ‘rooted cosmopolitanism’ can helpfully inform internationalization strategies
A high-throughput protein tagging toolkit that retains endogenous untranslated regions for studying gene regulation in kinetoplastids.
Get PDFKinetoplastid parasites cause diseases that threaten human and animal health. To survive transitions between vertebrate hosts and insect vectors, these parasites rely on precise regulation of gene expression to adapt to environmental changes. Since gene regulation in kinetoplastids is primarily post-transcriptional, developing efficient genetic tools for modifying genes at their endogenous loci while preserving regulatory mRNA elements is crucial for studying their complex biology. We present a CRISPR/Cas9-based tagging system that preserves untranslated regulatory elements and uses a viral 2A peptide from Thosea asigna to generate two separate proteins from a single transcript: a drug-selectable marker and a tagged protein of interest. This dual-function design maintains native control elements, allowing discrimination between regulation of transcript abundance, translational efficiency, and post-translational events. We validate the system by tagging six Trypanosoma brucei proteins and demonstrate (i) high-efficiency positive selection and separation of drug-selectable marker and target protein, (ii) preservation of regulatory responses to environmental cues like heat shock and iron availability, and (iii) maintenance of stage-specific regulation during developmental transitions. This versatile toolkit is applicable to all kinetoplastids amenable to CRISPR/ Cas9 editing, providing a powerful reverse genetic tool for studying post-transcriptional regulation and protein function in organisms where post-transcriptional control is dominant.</p
Coproducing an ecological momentary assessment measurement burst mental health study with young people:The MHIM coproduction protocol
Get PDFBackground: There is now widespread recognition within adolescence mental health research of the ethical imperative and benefits of coproduction. This has led to the development of best practice guidelines and the routine reporting of coproduction methods. However, there are unique considerations associated with involving young people in research with varying designs, e.g., longitudinal. Ideally, these decisions are made in consultation with young people themselves. Thus, the objective and novel contribution of this paper is (1) the involvement of young people in the development of the MHIM protocol, including an evaluative framework, and (2) a study protcol that utilises coproduction in the context of a longitudinal mental health project. Methods: We present a coproduction protocol (MHIM-YPAG), developed with young people (pre-study YPAG), that describes the planned approach to involving young people in the MHIM study. MHIM will use an accelerated longitudinal-cohort design that will combine ecological momentary assessment, bio-sampling, radar-based sleep measurement and online questionnaires to examine the relationship between daily-life-experiences and adolescence mental health. The protocol describes how young people will be involved in MHIM and how impact will be evaluated. Within this context, coproduction relates to (1) the codevelopment, with young people, of the study's structure and (2) their involvement as researchers, e.g., recruitment, data interpretation and knowledge-exchange. Patient or Public Contribution: As one of the first protocols of its kind, our coproduction protocol, informed by literature and consultations with young people (pre-study YPAG), can provide a template for planning and reporting coproduction in mental health studies of adolescence
A novel model for barriers to electric vehicle adoption in the Middle East
Get PDFThis study presents the first large-scale, representative survey to assess consumer preferences for electric vehicles (EVs) in the Middle East. Leveraging a large-scale data collection of more than 5,000 United Arab Emirates (UAE) respondents, this study employs a rigorous and novel methodology, capturing positive and negative influences on EV adoption, alongside environmental, financial, and normative dimensions. Our survey incorporates 52 specific barriers to EV adoption, covering technical, economic, infrastructural, and psychological factors. Financial cost perceptions were particularly salient; yet, general environmental views have an outsized effect on purchase likelihood, due to a large direct effect, and then notable associations with knowledge/experience of EVs, which themselves notably reduce perceived barriers to adoption. Understanding UAE consumers’ attitudes and beliefs are important for knowing how decision-makers can communicate about and target policy on EVs. We offer both a novel modelling approach, involving theoretically-derived four-stage mediation, and recommendations for government action in the UAE, Middle East and beyond.</p
Programming of pluripotency and the germ line co-evolved from a Nanog ancestor
Get PDFFrancois Jacob proposed that evolutionary novelty arises through incremental tinkering with pre-existing genetic mechanisms. Vertebrate evolution was predicated on pluripotency, the ability of embryonic cells to form somatic germ layers and primordial germ cells (PGCs). The origins of pluripotency remain unclear, as key regulators, such as Nanog, are not conserved outside of vertebrates. Given NANOG's role in mammalian development, we hypothesized that NANOG activity might exist in ancestral invertebrate genes. Here, we find that Vent from the hemichordate Saccoglossus kowalevskii exhibits NANOG activity, programming pluripotency in Nanog−/− mouse pre-induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and NANOG-depleted axolotl embryos. Vent from the cnidarian Nematostella vectensis showed partial activity, whereas Vent from sponges and vertebrates had no activity. VENTX knockdown in axolotls revealed a role in germline-competent mesoderm, which Saccoglossus Vent could rescue but Nematostella Vent could not. This suggests that the last deuterostome ancestor had a Vent gene capable of programming pluripotency and germline competence
Unequal access to diagnosis of myalgic encephalomyelitis in England
Get PDFBackgroundPeople with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME/CFS; sometimes referred to as chronic fatigue syndrome) experience poor health-related quality of life and only rarely recover. ME/CFS has no curative treatment, and no single diagnostic test. Public health and policy decisions relevant to ME/CFS require knowledge of its prevalence and barriers to diagnosis. However, people with ME/CFS report lengthy diagnostic delays and prevalence estimates vary greatly due to uneven diagnosis and misdiagnosis. Factors that influence diagnosis could be revealed by stratifying a single population by gender, age and ethnicity.MethodsHospital Episode Statistics data, routinely collected by the NHS in England, was downloaded from the Feasibility Self-Service of NHS DigiTrials. This was used to stratify individuals with the ICD-10 code that best reflects ME/CFS symptoms (G93.3) according to age, self-reported gender and ethnicity, General Practice and NHS England Integrated Care Board (ICB).ResultsIn all, 100,055 people in England had been diagnosed with ME/CFS (ICD-10:G93.3) between April 1 1989 and October 7 2023, 0.16% of all registered patients. Of these, 79,445 were females and 20,590 males, a female-to-male ratio of 3.88:1. Female relative to male prevalence peaked at about 6-to-1 in individuals’ fourth and fifth decades of life. Prevalence varied widely across the 42 ICBs: 0.086%-0.82% for females and 0.024%-0.21% for males. White individuals were approximately 5-fold more likely to be diagnosed with ME/CFS than others; Black, Asian or Chinese ethnicities are associated with particularly low rates of ME/CFS diagnoses. This ethnicity bias is stronger than for other common diseases. Among active English GP practices, 176 (3%) had no registered ME/CFS patients. Eight ICBs (19%) each contained fewer than 8 other-than-white individuals with a G93.3 code despite their registers containing a total of 293,770 other-than-white patients.ConclusionOther-than-white ethnic groups, older females (>60y), older males (>80y), and people living in areas of multiple deprivation are disproportionately undiagnosed with ME/CFS. Lifetime prevalence of ME/CFS for English females and males may be as high as 0.92% and 0.25%, respectively, or approximately 404,000 UK individuals overall (0.6%). This improved estimate of ME/CFS prevalence allows more accurate assessment of the socioeconomic and disease burden imposed by ME/CFS.<br/
Impact of Digital Health on Patient-Provider Relationships in Respiratory Secondary Care: A Systematic Review of Qualitative and Quantitative Evidence
Get PDFBackground: Digital health technology adoption has accelerated in respiratory care, particularly since COVID-19, supporting various applications from self-management to telerehabilitation. While these technologies have transformed healthcare delivery, their impact on the patient-provider relationship in specialist respiratory care remains poorly understood.Objective: To systematically review the literature on the impact of digital health technology on the patient-provider relationship in respiratory secondary care settings and to understand the factors that enhance or diminish this relationship.Methods: In December 2023, we conducted a systematic review following Cochrane methodology, searching MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, Cochrane databases, and PsycINFO. We included qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods studies examining digital health interventions in respiratory secondary care. Trained volunteers from the European Respiratory Society CONNECT Clinical Research Collaboration performed screening and data extraction. We conducted a qualitative meta-synthesis of findings, followed by an abductive quantitative data analysis. Three stakeholder workshops were held to interpret findings collaboratively with patients and healthcare professionals.Results: From 15,779 papers screened, 97 met the inclusion criteria (55 qualitative/mixed-methods studies, 42 quantitative studies). Studies covered various respiratory conditions, including COPD (32%), asthma (26%), and COVID-19 (13%). Four main themes emerged: trust (foundational to the relationship), adoption factors (including clinical context and implementation drivers), confidence in technology (based on functionality and the evidence base), and connection (encompassing communication and a caring presence). Digital health technology can either enhance or diminish trust between patients and clinicians, with patients' perceptions of the motivations behind its implementation being crucial. While technology facilitated access and communication, remote consultations risked depersonalisation, particularly when not balanced with in-person interactions. Self-monitoring and access to information empowered patients and promoted more equitable patient-provider relationships. Conclusions: Digital health technology can either strengthen or weaken patient-provider relationships in respiratory care, with effects impacted by adoption factors, confidence in technology, connection, and patient empowerment. Maintaining trust in the era of digital care requires transparent implementation of motivations, consideration of individual circumstances, and reliable technology that supports rather than replaces the therapeutic relationship.<br/
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